Kemp encourages, but won't mandate masks as Georgia continues COVID-19 fight

Gov. Brian Kemp and other state officials held a news briefing at the State Capitol Friday morning to give an update on the latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic in Georgia. 

"These continue to be challenging times in our community," the governor said.

Dr. Kathleen Toomey with the Georgia Department of Public Health said the state is seeing "community spread" with the test positivity rate at 13.6 percent; she also reported hospitalizations increased by 39 percent over the past week.

Kemp urged Georgians to do four things over the next four weeks as the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise.

  1. Wear a mask when out in public
  2. Practice physical distancing, stay 6-feet from those you don't live with
  3. Continue to wash your hands throughout the day
  4. Follow the executive order and listen to the guidance provided by public health officials 

"I'm asking Georgians to do their part," Kemp said. "Afterall, it's the community that defeats this virus, not the government."

Kemp said he believes Georgians will do the right thing and mask up voluntarily. He acknowledged the fight against COVID-19 is far from over, and so it seems, his legal battle with the City of Atlanta.

The governor slapped a lawsuit on Atlanta's Mayor and City Council for allegedly stepping outside of their authority, enacting an "unenforceable" mask mandate and pushing the city back into Phase I, which means no dining in or non-essential outings.

"Men and women have seen their paychecks disappear," Kemp said. "Fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers are barely hanging on. Mayor Bottoms' mask mandate cannot be enforced, and her decision to shutter businesses and undermine economic growth is devastating."

Bottoms highlighted on Twitter that the Phase I guidelines are recommended.

Reporters zeroed in on the governor's resistance to a mask mandate. He said cities should not be introducing additional requirements until they enforce his executive order's existing measures, such as limitations on group gatherings.

"To add another mandate that's not going to be enforced in communities that haven't enforced other orders, in my opinion, is a failed policy," he said.

Both sides though claim they're standing up for Georgians' lives and livelihoods. 

The state's Democratic Party said more Georgians will die because of Kemp's stance on face-covering requirements. 

Mayor Bottoms said taxpayer money would be better spent on testing and contact tracing rather than legal fees.

Governor Kemp was joined by several other top state officials, who reported plans to increase testing capacity by 10,000 COVID-19 tests per day and add several hundred contact tracers.

The hour-long news conference also touched on returning to school. The state superintendent said he "guarantees" the children and teachers will be safe.

Dr. Toomey talked about reopening schools and revealed State Superintendent Richard Woods as well as other state school officials worked together to create health and safety guidelines for schools to safely re-open.

The guidelines include direction on deploying devices and ensuring connectivity for those devices, preparing and serving school meals, sanitizing facilities, equipment, and transportation, and how to handle student attendance amid virtual and distant learning.

For more, click here

Representatives from the Georgia National Guard, Department of Community Health and Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency also spoke. Officials said there are numerous facilities on standby with several hundred additional hospital beds.